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PaperclipPerfector  5mo ago (text post)   3303 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for December 8, 2023

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

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Fairytale of New York, routinely voted the best Christmas song by Irish and British people, and for good reason. Every December there's a tiresome and interminable debate about whether or not the song is homophobic because the lyrics feature the word "faggot", ignoring the context that it's said in character by an alcoholic heroin addicted woman who's going out of her way to insult and belittle her partner. Lead singer Shane McGowan died a few weeks ago, meaning the Irish radio stations have been playing this one even more often than usual this Christmas, although frankly his death came as no surprise to anyone and he's looked like he's on death's door for years now.

This song is mostly unheard of in America, but I’ve been trying to spread the good word about it since I heard it around holiday season 2017.

Yeah I was going to say, I'm a bit surprised to see how popular this song has become. It's always been in my family's playlists, because The Pogues were only slightly less popular than Elton in my family, but I always feel like I'm on the defensive about it with other people in Australia. Learning it's actually popular and not just because McGowan passed is making me pretty emotional right now. It's not a particularly nice (or saccharine) Christmas song, but it absolutely nails the feel of the holiday when you can't summon denial.

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